INSTAGRAM - 2016
59. Roadway to Heaven
🌎: I-35 West - West, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 1/21/2016
60. Farewell
🌎: Wade Crossing Apartments - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 12/31/2015
📅: 1/26/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: And there it is, my empty room. You can tell it’s a bit worn down from over the years, but it took good care of us. So many daydreams were dreamed out that window. So many good times as we’d sit on the carpet and play games. I can never say it enough. I miss that place. I take a walk around the complex sometimes. Gives me peace of mind.
61. Still Alive
🌎: Hope Fellowship Church - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 1/28/2016
🌎: Prestonwood Baptist Church - Plano, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 1/31/2016
📅: 2/1/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: Taken after a performance by Michael W. Smith. Apparently he’s good friends with the pastor there, so since he was in the area, he lead worship for that particular weekend. Here's the full performance!
🌎: Genesis Metro Church - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 2/10/2016
Retrospective Note 2023: Ah yes. The very first backdrop when I first started vlogging. I had been doing a review blog series titled "Reel Quick Reviews" since 2012, and was ready to give it an upgrade by putting myself out there. It was intimidating, and a challenge, but I tried it, and even though I put out only 3 episodes, it would kickstart my career as a creative. I didn't know it then of course, but had it not been for this series, I'd still be dealing with the hurdles of putting my face out there for all to see. It's a very vulnerable thing to do when you've never done it before. Thankfully I had good supporters that encouraged me, which made it easier for sure. Eventually "RQR" turned into "ScreenTest", but that's a story for another time.
In terms of the backdrop, since I was a janitor for churches at the time, I'd get access to the buildings after-hours to clean. This was in their youth area, and was a perfect background to get started on. It would just be me, the camera, and the church all to myself. I probably wasn't supposed to do this, but hey, I saw an opportunity, and I took it. It was a surreal thing, having the church all to myself in the middle of the night like that. It certainly made filming easy since there was no one to disturb. Good times. You can watch all 3 episodes of "Reel Quick Reviews" here!
64. Vanity
🌎: Hope Fellowship Church - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 2/21/2016
🌎: Bannockburn Church - Austin, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 3/16/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: The church my good friends went to when they lived in Austin! They took wedding pictures there. I was honored to be one of their groomsmen~ 💙
🌎: Hope Fellowship Church - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 3/25/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: I remember wanting to start a series where I’d take pictures of media I started collecting in artistic ways. It's a project that fell by the way side, but I'd love to try again at some point.
68. Pillar
🌎: Hi Tunes Karaoke - Austin, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 4/20/2016
🌎: Hope Fellowship Church - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 4/24/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: Taken in remembrance of Prince after his passing.
70. Metro
🌎: Mockingbird Station - Dallas, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 3/17/2016
📅: 5/11/2016
🌎: Kings Ridge - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 5/19/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: Vinny’s first record with his band, Red Vox. You can read my gushings about this here.
73. Grunge
🌎: Hope Fellowship Church - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 6/10/2016
74. Aftermath
🌎: Commerce St. & Riverfront Blvd. - Dallas, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 7/7/2016
📅: 7/8/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: On July 7th, 2016, around 8PM, a shooting occurred in Downtown Dallas as a peaceful BLM protest was beginning to wrap up. When it was over around midnight, I got in my car, and drove to see my city. A lot of streets were still blocked off, though eventually they allowed people in for a candlelight vigil to happen at the police station in honor of the fallen officers that night. That of which, I attended, as I grieved with several others on that nightmare of a night.
🌎: Cafe Brown Sugar (Closed) - Carrollton, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 7/26/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: It’s a shame Cafe Brown Sugar closed, but the building was reoccupied by another coffee shop by the name of “Tom N Toms Coffee”, so it’s not too big of a loss. The building itself is remarkable, with 2 levels on the inside, and beautiful brick walls. As long as that doesn’t go away, we’re good~ 💙
76. Tradition
🌎: Cinemark Frisco Square and XD - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 7/27/2016
77. Reflection
🌎: Sheraton Dallas Hotel - Dallas, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 8/13/2016
📅: 8/15/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: A view of the Plaza of the Americas from the streets next to the Sheraton. I remember that year’s AnimeFest being slightly off considering the shooting that had occurred a month prior, but overall, everyone had a good time, and it was good joining in solidarity. Love always wins~ 💙
78. Late Sunset
🌎: Orion Prosper Lakes - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 8/18/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: The first Instagram taken from our first apartment. Also, inspired by one of my favorite Microsoft Office gradients~ 💙
80. Superior
🌎: The Grain Silos on Main St. - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 1/29/2016
📅: 8/25/2016
81. Penrose
🌎: The Shops at Legacy - Plano, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 2/9/2016
📅: 8/27/2016
82. Nostalgia
🌎: Kroger Marketplace - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 9/2/2016
📅: 9/4/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: When Surge made a brief comeback after being discontinued in 2003. Also, this would be the last post that used borders. I started to feel like they took away from the composition at hand, and I noticed they made the image quality worse (and the image size smaller).
83. Doggo
🌎: Overlook by the Park - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 6/16/2016
📅: 9/4/2016
84. Destiny
🌎: Orion Prosper Lakes - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 8/18/2016
📅: 9/7/2016
Retrospective Note 2023: From our first apartment. It was an incredible start for mine and Jessica's lives. It was small, but it was just the right size for our new beginning not just as a couple, but as 20 somethings taking on the world. When I look at this image, I'm taken back to the moment we both first tasted the air of freedom. What an unforgettable feeling.
86. Gone
🌎: Anna Elementary School (Closed) - Anna, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 5/22/2016
📅: 9/13/2016
Retrospective Note 2023: On a whim of nostalgia, I visited Anna, TX. Lived there for 3 years before moving to Frisco, where I ended up growing up for the rest of my childhood years. Anna was weird for me. It was fun to live there, being it was the country and all, but the school system was terrible, and my 4th grade year in particular was the year that ruined me. My teacher didn’t treat me right. Made me feel stupid in front of the class and ignored me. My grades suffered because of her, and it made 5th grade much harder for me when we moved to Frisco, since my understanding of Math was not as developed as the rest of the kids. That’s what made moving to Frisco all that more special though. The teacher I had cared about me and her students. She was intentional on working with me so that I could pass, and pass I did.
Anna has developed in terms of infrastructure these days. It used to be nothing but land, but now they've got big box stores, restaurants, and a TON of new homes. Although, many of the old places still remain and look about like they did back in 2002-2004, like this place for example, which is the parking lot outside of what used to be my old elementary school. Anna may be developing, but more importantly, I hope their school system is developing as well. These children deserve so much better than what I got out of Anna ISD all those years ago. Shout out to my 3rd grade teacher though, Mrs. Gordon. She was the only teacher from those years that actually loved her students, and I'm so glad she was the light that Anna ISD absolutely needed.
🌎: Orion Prosper Lakes - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 9/27/2016
Retrospective Note 2023: Yes, that’s Vinny’s Red Vox release of “Blood Bagel” floating in the toilet. Don’t worry, it was still in the shrink wrap, and yes, I cleaned and flushed the toilet before submerging. It was worth the likes okay? Stop looking at me like that.
🌎: Collin College Preston Ridge Campus - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 9/29/2016
📅: 10/3/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: Used to bike down this hill as kids. Always reminded me of that one XP wallpaper~ 💙
89. Awake
🌎: Orion Prosper Lakes - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 10/3/2016
📅: 10/4/2016
90. Crossroads
🌎: Dallas North Tollway & 121 - Plano, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 3/13/2016
📅: 10/5/2016
🌎: Shawnee Trail Sports Complex - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 9/29/2016
📅: 10/10/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: My favorite childhood park (mostly because this is where I went to school when I first moved to Frisco). Always loved how this place looked with a blue sky backdrop. Lots of dreams were dreamed here. I still choose to dream there~ 💙
92. TARDIS
🌎: US 380 Between Preston & La Cima - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 11/2/2016
📅: 11/3/2016
🌎: Dallas/Plano Marriott at Legacy Town Center - Plano, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 10/29/2016
📅: 11/17/2016
96. Sunny in the Fall
🌎: Recreation Center at Towne Lake - McKinney, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 11/28/2016
📅: 12/1/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: Another one of my nostalgic strolls. This time, in a place I hadn’t seen in years. Before we moved to Frisco, and even before we moved to Anna, we lived in McKinney for a few short years. My memories there are vague since I was so young, but as soon as I set foot in this area, it all came back to me. The park at Wilson Creek, the Treymore apartments we lived in at one point, the 3 different elementary schools I attended, I explored it all. It was a long, and wonderful day~ 💙
🌎: Shawnee Trail Elementary - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 9/29/2016
📅: 12/10/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: There it is. The elementary school that changed my life for the better back when I moved here in the Fall of 2004~ 💙
100. Office Space
🌎: Hope Fellowship Church - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 12/10/2016
📅: 12/11/2016
🌎: Rogers Middle School - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 12/13/2016
Retrospective Note 2020: Any time there’s a foggy day, I’m drawn into its call. Suddenly, I’m transported to that place…
104. The 1st - Merry Christmas 2016
🌎: Orion Prosper Lakes - Prosper, TX
📸: iPhone 6s
📅: 12/26/2016
105. Searching
🌎: Kings Ridge - Frisco, TX
📸: iPhone 6s - 12/13/2016
📅: 12/29/2016